


The Nightman Cometh

by pandemoniumatthediscotheque



Category: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Genre: Ambiguous Relationships, Angst, Cuddling & Snuggling, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Nightmares, Past Child Abuse, Past Rape/Non-con, Substance Abuse, Supportive Mac, charlie has a nightmare, mac is there for him
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-27
Updated: 2019-07-27
Packaged: 2020-07-23 07:09:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20004325
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pandemoniumatthediscotheque/pseuds/pandemoniumatthediscotheque
Summary: Charlie has a nightmare. Mac helps him through it.





	The Nightman Cometh

In a dingy apartment in dingy South Philly, a frantic young man was looking for something he couldn’t live without. 

“Where is it? Where is it?” He mumbled angrily to himself as he knocked over piles of unpaid bills and fines. 

“Charlie, what are you doing? It’s three o’clock in the morning, just go to bed.” His long-time friend and accomplice in crime Mac asked. 

“I gotta find some, Mac, it’s coming back, I can’t do it, not now, you gotta help me Mac, I need it.” He turned away from his current pile of junk and started moving the table to get to the door behind it. Maybe there was some in the bathroom that not even Frank and Charlie usually dared to go into. 

“Find what? What are you looking for?”

“I don’t care Mac, anything, beer, glue, weed, dust, coke, anything, everything, just something, I need it, I can’t do this right now.”

His face was flushed with nervous sweat, his hair matted to his skin like plaster. His hands moved of their own accord, twisting and grabbing at each other like the frantic energy could be released by moving fast enough. 

“Oh my god Charlie, go to bed. Can’t we do this in the morning?” Mac switched on the lamp next to the pullout and saw Charlie’s panic-stricken face. 

“Hey, I didn’t mean that, I’m sorry, I-” Mac immediately went back on his word as he remembered how Charlie used to get on nights like these. When they were kids, and Charlie would crawl into his bedroom unannounced with the same face, saying nothing, and grabbing Mac’s emergency glue stash before passing out in Mac’s arms. They never talked about those nights, even when Luther woke them up and chased Charlie outside, yelling about how it was wrong. Mac would come to school the next day with a black eye and a crooked nose, but he never complained. He knew Charlie needed him. 

Mac stood up and crossed the tiny room to Charlie. He wrapped his arms around the smaller man’s shivering frame, encasing him in a safe haven just like when they were little. 

“Tell me what happened.”

“I- I was back, back when he lived with us, and Ma was out- out getting groceries, and the sun was in my eyes, and he came in my room, and he- he said that I could never get rid of him, and he held me down, and-” he buried his head in Mac’s shoulder, dry sobs echoing across the apartment. 

Mac rubbed his back, whispering sweet encouragement in his ear. 

“You’re okay Charlie, you’re safe, he can’t hurt you here, you’re strong and that was a long time ago and he can’t hurt you now.” Mac’s hand reached up to card through Charlie’s damp hair, lifting his head up so they could see each other’s faces. 

“I’m right here, Charlie. I’m right here.” Charlie pressed his forehead against Mac’s, grateful for the soft touch from the only one he really trusted. 

“Let’s get you back to bed, okay? I’ve got a pack of Benadryl in my bag somewhere.” Mac lead Charlie by his shoulders back to the pullout, where he grabbed a blister pack of pink pills from his weekender. He popped three out and placed them in Charlie’s sweaty palm. 

“Do you want some water?” Charlie shook his head numbly, swallowing the pills dry. He leaned back into Mac’s muscular frame, making himself as small as possible. Mac wrapped his arms and legs around the smaller man, knowing that Charlie liked to be held close in times like these. They stayed like that for a while, until Charlie’s body began to relax and his thoughts became hazy. 

“I love you, Mac.” Charlie’s easy smile pressed against the side of Mac’s mouth. His head lolled to the side as he struggled to retain consciousness. 

“I know you do, buddy. Go to sleep now.” Mac moved Charlie’s heavy body into a sleeping position, pulled the covers over the both of them, and turned off the lamp.

“Good night.” Charlie pressed his torso against Mac’s, looking for a final physical comfort before he slid off into oblivion.

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first fic that I've put up here, sorry if it's terrible. I didn't edit it and I wrote this in 20 minutes. Please comment!


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